Prologue: Lilac Lines

Pale lavender eyes gazed back at me from the mirror shards. Were reflections supposed to show eyes filled with malice and unrestrained hatred? The byakugan was meant to see all, so why did I only see death?

- X -

"Aww, she's adorable!"

"Hn."

"Hiashi, don't be like that. Look around her eyes!"

"What-" Hiashi was speechless. Around the infant's eyes were small veins, but instead of how they would have bulged if the byakugan was active, they were glowing. The shimmering lavender lines all lead to two spots- the infant's eyes, still covered with paper-thin lids.

"Hmm... Wonder what it is. A mutated byakugan, or just an infantile, activated one?"

"If the former, then the arrangements will be made to transfer her into the Branch Family."

"-And if the latter, she's a prodigy. Don't speak so lightly of abandoning family, you of all people should know the repercussions." Hitomi chastised, flicking her husband lightly on the shoulder.

Hiashi stiffened, then spoke in a quiet voice. "The elders would force me to. It's not as if I want another Neji, with a dark past causing a dreary future."

"Remind me, why haven't we killed all the elders yet?"

The infant squealed at the exact moment those words left the Hyuuga matriarch's lips, cutting off anything that Hiashi could have said. Of course, Hitomi, being the doting mother that she was, immediately picked up her child and wrapped her arms around her protectively.

"What should we name her?"

Hiashi's lips twisted in a cruel smile. "Unmei, fate."

Hitomi stared at her husband as if he were a madman. "Are you purposely trying to spite Neji-kun?"

"No. Yes. Maybe."

"...Idiot. Fine, Unmei Hyuuga it is. Welcome to the Hyuuga clan, Unmei-chan!"

Hitomi's only response were blinking eyes, the byakugan evidently active within their pale lavender depths.

- X -Three years later- X -

"Neji-nee!"

"What ever is the matter, Unmei-san?"

"You have a stick up your ass."

Neji sputtered. "Ex-Excuse me, Unmei-san?"

Said girl giggled, jumping onto her cousin's back. "Nothing~" She sang, still giggling, while Neji sighed at her antics.

"Hiashi-sama should be training you now, no?"

"He is training me. I'm a lilac clone."

Cue another sigh from Neji. "And since when have you been able to form clones out of flower petals from nowhere?"

"Twenty-three seconds ago!" Unmei chimed, her eyes shining, basking in the glory of her achievement.

"Does Hiashi-sama-" Neji spat out the clan head's name like a curse, "-know that you have come to visit me via clone?"

"Nope! But I love you too much to care!"

"You know this thing called 'incest'?"

"Awh, is Neji-kun interested in his younger cousin?"

Neji slightly blushed, cursing the fact that the small girl always knew which strings to pull to get a reaction out of him. She'd be a fine puppeteer. "No. You're the one who said you loved me."

"Bah!"

Neji walked on, his cheerful cousin- well, clone of said cousin- still stubbornly clinging to his back, her delicate arms slung around his neck. 'I truly do wonder how much of a prodigy she really is. Anyhow, did Hiashi-sama name her 'fate' just to spite me? It seems quite likely.' He mused, taking a turn in the hallways to head towards his private training grounds. It wouldn't matter if Unmei knew the location, as he trusted her enough not to tattle.

He set the clone down once he reached the training grounds, eliciting a drawn-out, dramatic whimper from the girl. Ignoring it- prompting a pout- Neji began going through the kata for the Gentle Fist, making sure each stance was as accurate as could be.

This continued for a while, before Unmei suddenly cut in, "Your legs are too spread apart. Bring your left foot in a little, and raise your right elbow just slightly."

Neji huffed, but shifted his stance regardless of his dislike of a younger Main Family member criticizing his stance. As he went through the kata again, he soon found that Unmei's suggestions proved useful, as his movements became more fluid and when he would have become slightly sore at the end, he simply felt relieved muscles.

"...Thank you, Unmei-san."

"That's Unmei-chan to you, Neji-kun."

He continued training in silence. However, the clone soon got irritated by his silent ways, and Neji was suddenly prodded in the back of his head by two fingers.

Unmei leant forward, whispering right by his ear, "If I had put chakra into that strike, your brain would be mush."

Neji's eyes narrowed, and he spun around, lashing out towards the clone with quick, efficient strikes.

Unmei grinned, "That's more like it!"

None of his hits met their mark. The clan heiress was evidently more flexible and agile than he, but her strikes were more gentle, and a few of her strikes wouldn't have even caused any damage, regardless of the chakra in the blow. Of course, when fighting against the Gentle Fist, agility was everything, with how you couldn't block without losing feeling in that particular area.

Both participants in the spar soon found themselves enjoying the match, accepting it as a welcome difference from the typical stiff schedule for training that the Hyuuga typically applied to their training sessions.

Dodge, jab, twirl, look like a ballerina, poke, giggle, slam a palm strike in a vital area. "...I concede. Thank you for your help, Unmei...chan."

"Yay! Neji-nee noticed me!"

"..."

Unmei smiled, her genuine, childish Cheshire grin. "Anything for you, my love."

"What?"

The clone dissipated in a swirl of lilac petals, leaving a slightly happier Neji with slightly rose-tinted cheeks.

- X -Two years later- X -

"Unmei-chan, I'm enrolling you in the ninja Academy, along with Neji-kun."

"Yes, Hiashi-sama." Both Unmei and Neji spoke. Neji and Unmei bowed, letting Hiashi's stern gaze sweep over their posture for a moment.

Satisfied, he continued, "I expect the best performance from the both of you, especially you, Unmei. Rookie of the Year, at the very least."

"Yes, father."

"Good." His expression softened as his gaze shifted to his brother's son, hesitating briefly. "I expect the best from you as well. If Unmei does not receive the aforementioned title, I expect you to have it, and then she should be Kunoichi of the Year, yes?"

"Of course, Hiashi-sama." The two children chorused, still bowing.

"Now leave. I have paperwork to attend to, elders to plan assassinations for." The last bit was spoken in a hushed whisper, Hiashi's eyes narrowing.

Both Neji and Unmei did not comment, wisely striding outside the room in the manner that screamed Hyuuga.

Once outside, and outside the hearing of her father, Unmei commented, "Aren't I two years too young for the Academy?"

"Hiashi-sama evidently has much faith in your prodigal status."

Unmei sighed, walking in the direction of the clan compound's gardens. "Too much faith, if you ask me. Is he trying to make me a weapon or some such?"

"Shinobi are weapons who only serve their village. Have you forgotten?"

"I'd like to."

"Such blasphemous talk will only earn you an exile."

"That might be nice, too."

Neji sighed. Nothing seemed to affect Unmei's childish beliefs of a peaceful world.

After a while of comfortable silence, where the two walked side by side, Unmei spoke, her voice a tad bit quieter than the norm. "I don't believe in peace, you know."

Neji arched an eyebrow, gesturing for her to continue.

"It's just that... Well, humans shouldn't be weapons for other humans. In the end, if we're trained too well, we're easily susceptible to feelings of hatred, desire for revenge. We could exceed our mentors, and for people with dark intentions, that could cause betrayals left and right."

"That's exactly what the Caged Bird seal is for, Unmei-chan." Neji spoke bitterly, fingering the cloth that covered his forehead, and the seal that lay on top.

Silence reigned once more, Unmei reaching out to hold Neji's hand reassuringly. "I'll find a way. I'll break the seal, just wait for me, 'kay Neji-kun?"

Neji walked on in silence, hand in hand with Unmei. His words went unspoken. 'I know you will.'